Tragedy & Romance for a retro Music Video

Customer Story #1

When Daniel, Me Estás Matando's co-producer Nacho convinced Daniel and Iván on how awesome it would be to have a cool old-school animation for their next single, they hit a wall. 

The Client

Daniel, Me Estás Matando is a new bolero band based in Mexico. They do romantic and heartfelt songs and have been growing at lightspeed since they started in 2018. Their music videos at that time were real action or lyric videos. This time they wanted something different.

As of July 30th 2020:
YouTube 169,000 subscribers 
Spotify 667,000 monthly listeners
Instagram 62,000 followers

The Challenge

When the band tried to get a retro anime-styled music video quotes and such, all they could see for a while were Japanese language barriers, cultural differences, low understanding of what you will get as a result, fear of pricing not according to value...

But wait, couldn't they contact someone else who talks your language? High prices, despair... Guess what, making animation is highly time-consuming and costly!

Then, at Maru Exposito, we delivered THIS:


"I am delighted with the music video"

Nacho Sotelo, band's co-producer

If you wish to collaborate or hire us, fill int he form to ensure we are the right fit.

The Solution

I (Mar) learned animation in Tokyo, and speak fluent English/Spanish, the latter being the one used for this project. 

True, Nacho could get quotes from some other animation studios in Spanish too, but he was about to give up seeing their quotes. However, I talked with them through video calls and chat showing plenty of examples to understand the key needs of the band. 

Together, we discovered that thanks to the "old-style" they wanted, there were ways to adapt the animation aesthetics to make sure they received a high-quality product at their budget and desired deadline. 

We would cut animation drawings by sliding the characters around as in many classic anime endings, keeping complex animation for special scenes.

The next thing Nacho and the band received was a PDF with a video explaining the story in a clear way, character designs, some panels to see how it would look like a bit better, and the next steps. As an extra, the visuals actually matched the lyrics! Not a requirement, but definitely a cool addition.

This step could have been done in a meeting but video+PDF was the best call to master time zone differences.

"The communication, production process, deliverables, script, design, and price-result ratio from Maru Exposito were excellent."

Nacho Sotelo, band's co-producer

After some tweaks, and contacting a background artist for help, we could start producing! That still incorporated Nacho by showing the animated storyboard, and more "in-process" imaginary to ensure the progress was still on the line. 

I was actually available on chat, always replying within 24h and communicating clear expectations: what is the next step, when to expect it, did I need anything in advance from the band (example: lyric confirmations), etc. 

That helped us notice changes needed to get the results closer and closer to what they had in mind.

For example, we changed the font to a more retro style, as well as decided to add a filter to create the VHS recording effect.

"I would work with Mar again."

Nacho Sotelo, Co-producer of Daniel, Me Estás Matando

Deal Summary

  • Youtube HD 1920x1080 (ratio a 16:9), mp4 file.

  • The price includes up to 10h worth of revisions.

  • Revisions in set parts of the project. For example script, storyboard, designs, final animation.

  • 3 people team approximately.

  • Japanese words appearing in the video.

  • Cross-marketing: sharing bits of the video and a making of while tagging and giving credit to the band.

  • Inclusion of the final video to the studio website (with link to the band).

  • High Quality stills from the animation and creative material so the band can use it as necessary for promotion.

Part from the Script and Concept Art Proposal

Screenshot from Mar explaining the script

Proving how sometimes a recorded video is best than a meeting when time zones and busy schedules could delay production

Animated Storyboard Gif from a part of the actual video delivered

Even if this project happened with the covid-19's first waves (March-June 2020), the animation work and online communication caused no delays to the music video production. 

The Results

Video release's chat:

YouTube stats 35 days after release:

Views: 170,437
Likes: 14,002
Dislikes: 44

Band's final thoughts

"(Mar) is an excellent worker and artist who will take care of the project needs without dismissing art and ethical values."

Nacho Sotelo, Co-producer of Daniel, Me Estás Matando

"[...] Also, @maruexposito.art , the marvelous genious of crucial and significative illustrations, make us a favour by drawing us much more handsome than we truly are."

Instagram post, in Spanish

@danielmeestasmatando, Co-producer of Daniel, Me Estás Matando

"[...] The video was done teleworking from Japan, with the illustration master and life communicator @maruexposito.art "

Instagram post, in Spanish

@danielmeestasmatando, Co-producer of Daniel, Me Estás Matando


See your dream animation become a reality as well

Whether you already have a song you need stunning visuals for, or you just think it would be good to collaborate in another type of animated project, do not hesitate to get in touch with us!